Do you want to fit mental training into you and your athlete daughter’s schedule, but you don’t know how? When you think about adding something else in, do you feel overwhelmed? Do you continue to tell yourself that you’ll do mental training “one day”, but that day keeps getting pushed?

You already know how important it is for your daughter to train the mental side of her game. You want to see her play with confidence, and you know that if she focuses on mental training, she can get there. As her mom, you also want to make time to train your mental game too, so you can help. But how can you fit it all in?

Today, we’re sharing three practical tips that will help make it easy for you and your daughter to incorporate this important aspect of her training into both of your busy schedules. These tips come directly from our sports moms and their athlete daughters that are making time for the Elite Competitor Program in the midst of their own busy schedules. If they can make it work, we know you can, too! 

How To Prioritize Mental Training

Before we jump into the three practical tips for incorporating mental training into your schedule, it’s important to address the two things you can do to prioritize mental training. When mental training becomes a priority, it’s easier to incorporate it into our schedules. When it gets hard to schedule it, your ability to push through the hard will depend on how much, or how little, you prioritize mental training.

First, we naturally make time for the things that are important to us. There’s no way around this truth – we simply make time for the things that matter to us. When we decide that something is important to us, we will find the time in our schedules for it. You already do this for the things in your life that are important to you, like relationships, fitness, healthy eating, and the list could go on. So, if you’re struggling to find time for mental training, it might be worth checking in on how much of a priority it is, or isn’t, to you. 

Second, know that investing time in mental training will actually save you time in the long run. Ask yourself, how much time have you already spent trying to convince your daughter she’s good enough? How often does she dwell on mistakes after a game, and beat herself up about it? How much time have you already spent not knowing what to say when she’s spiraling on negative beliefs about herself on the car ride home after a tough game? At the dinner table? Spending a relatively small amount of time on the mental side of her sport now will save a big amount of time later. When she knows how to productivity process her performance, and when you feel confident about what to say before and after her game, you’ll save time in the long term.

The Elite Competitor Program is a 10-week program and lessons are 30-40 minutes long. No really, that’s it! Can you carve out 30-40 minutes in your schedule once a week? That’s all it takes.

3 Practical Tips To Help Moms + Athletes Get It Done

First, put it in the calendar. What gets scheduled, gets done, right? It really can be that simple. Take a look at your week and find your 30-40 minute window to schedule in ECP time for both you and your daughter. Either at the same time, or different times, depending on what’s best for you both and what works. Once you add it to your calendars, it won’t be an afterthought.

Second, make mental training something that you both look forward to. Going through mental training with your daughter can be a really fun mom and daughter bonding experience. Make it a coffee date, go grab a treat, and do your ECP work together. Make a “date” out of it, and before you know it, you’ll both be looking forward to this blocked out time together. ECP time could be family time, too. Some families will go through it together by putting it on the TV during family time. This makes it really simple for your athlete to get mental training into their schedule while feeling supported by the family.

Third, stack mental training onto something that you’re already doing. If it’s really challenging to specifically carve out time in your schedule, try to squeeze it in with something else where it makes sense. If you’re doing a mindless task such as folding laundry, you can easily stream the program through your headphones like you would stream a podcast to get it done. This applies for your athlete as well. You can help your athlete find a pocket of time in their schedule to fit it in, such as during their chores around the house or on a car ride.

In Conclusion

All of these practical tips come directly from moms and athletes who are already in the program and making it work for them. A little bit of investment on the front end goes a long way and saves a lot of time on the backend. Remember – mental training actually doesn’t take a lot of time, but it is time well spent!

You already know how hard you’re working to help your daughter get to the next level, we don’t have to remind you of that. But with the help of mental training, you can double down on helping her get to where she wants to be, help her play with confidence, and believe in herself as much as you believe in her. 

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Helpful Links:

• Visit our podcast website for more on this episode.
• Join our FREE Training for Sports Moms – How to Strengthen Your Athlete Daughter’s Mental Game so She Believes in Herself as Much as You Do